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A Planetary Health Approach to the Labeling of Plant-Based Meat

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A Planetary Health Approach to the Labeling of Plant-Based Meat A Planetary Health Approach to the Labeling of Plant-Based Meat NICOLE E. NEGOWETTI* ABSTRACT In 2019, alternative proteins became mainstream. “Bleeding” plant-based burgers are now available at fast-food restaurants and grocery stores across the country, and the field of cellular agriculture—production of meat, dairy, and eggs from cells instead of livestock—is advancing rapidly. The replacement of conventional animal products with plant-based and cell-based alternatives signifies, for their producers and advocates, a turning point toward a more sustainable, just, and healthy food system. Yet, for the livestock industry, some consumer protection and environmental groups, and “natural” food advocates, these “Frankenfoods” or “fake foods” represent a flawed techno-fix. This paper explores these politicized narratives which have brought regulatory and legal issues of naming and labeling to the forefront of FDA’s and USDA’s agenda, have received congressional attention, and are also being addressed by state legislatures proposing and passing laws to define foods, such as “meat.” The health benefits and risks of both conventional and alternative meat products are focal issues in the conflicting narratives reported in the media and communicated through advertising campaigns. Focusing on FDA-regulated plant-based meat products that are currently or soon-to-be on the market, this paper evaluates the appropriate role of government in clarifying, and not further obfuscating, the issues. It does so by analyzing the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and FDA’s existing labeling guidance and regulations regarding “healthy” implied nutrient content claims. The paper argues for a broader approach to defining “healthy” that considers both human and planetary health and allows consumers to compare the healthfulness of alternative products with their conventional counterparts. I. INTRODUCTION In September 2019, RethinkX, an independent think tank, announced, “We are on the cusp of the deepest, fastest, most consequential disruption in food and agricultural production since the first domestication of plants and animals ten thousand years ago.”1 Driving this dramatic shift are technological developments in the protein sector. * Clinical Instructor and Lecturer on Law, Harvard Law School Animal Law and Policy Clinic, and former Policy Director of the Good Food Institute. The author thanks FDLI for the opportunity to present this paper at the 2019 Symposium, and in particular, Nigel Barrella for his very helpful comments. The author also benefitted tremendously from feedback received at the Second Annual Academy of Food Law and Policy Conference from Professors Timothy Lytton, Alexia Burnet Marks, Sarah Morath, Michael Roberts, Joanna Sax, Susan Schneider, Steph Tai, and Diana Winters. 1 RETHINKX, RETHINKING FOOD AND AGRICULTURE 2020-2030 6 (2019), https://www.rethinkx.com/food-and-agriculture#food-and-agriculture-download [https://perma.cc/AH3T- XXJX]. 142 2020 LABELING OF PLANT-BASED MEAT 143 The start of this decade marks the mainstreaming of alternative proteins. With so many existing and start-up companies creating their own versions of faux meat, it amounts to “a veggie burger arms race.”2 The “bleeding” plant-based Impossible Burger is now available at fast-food restaurants across the country, plant-based meat company Beyond Meat had a record initial public offering (IPO) offering in May 2019,3 and plant-based milks are being purchased by nearly half of all U.S. households.4 Meanwhile, the field of cellular agriculture—production of meat, dairy, and eggs from cells instead of livestock—is advancing rapidly.5 The replacement of conventional animal products with plant-based and cell-based alternatives signifies, for their producers and advocates, a turning point toward a more sustainable, just, and healthy food system. Yet, for the livestock industry, some consumer protection and environmental groups, and “natural” food advocates, these “Frankenfoods” or “fake foods” represent a flawed techno-fix. These politicized narratives have brought regulatory and legal issues of naming and labeling to the forefront of Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s and U.S. Department of Agriculture(USDA)’s agenda, have received congressional attention, and are also being addressed by state legislatures proposing and passing laws to define foods, such as “meat.”6 The fight for control over publicly accepted and utilized terminology also extends to the broader narrative about conventional and alternative foods’ credence attributes, including sustainability, animal welfare, and healthfulness.7 The public health benefits and risks of both the conventional and alternative products are a key component of the conflicting narratives reported in the media and utilized in advertising campaigns. From plant-based and emerging cell-based food producers, the public receives information about the harmful environmental impacts of animal products and their negative health impacts due to high levels of saturated fat or the use of hormones or antibiotics.8 From a variety of other food system stakeholders, consumers are warned of the dangers and unintended consequences of 2 Jack Ewing, Nestlé Says It Can Be Virtuous and Profitable. Is That Even Possible?, N.Y. TIMES (Nov. 15, 2019), https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/15/business/nestle-environment-sustainability.html [https://perma.cc/5CBH-5XJF]. 3 Mike Murphy, Beyond Meat Soars 163% in Biggest Popping U.S. IPO Since 2000, MARKETWATCH (May 5, 2019), https://www.marketwatch.com/story/beyond-meat-soars-163-in-biggest- popping-us-ipo-since-2000-2019-05-02 [https://perma.cc/W9GW-4RVD]. 4 Forty-one point three percent of all U.S. households purchase plant-based milk. THE GOOD FOOD INST., PLANT-BASED MARKET OVERVIEW (2020), https://www.gfi.org/marketresearch [https://perma.cc/ T44T-6M2Q]. 5 See, e.g., MARTIN ROWE, BRIGHTER GREEN, BEYOND THE IMPOSSIBLE, THE FUTURES OF PLANT- BASED AND CELLULAR MEAT AND DAIRY 6 (2019), https://brightergreen.org/news/beyond-the-impossible- the-futures-of-plant-based-and-cellular-meat-and-dairy-published/ [https://perma.cc/VXH8-ZVQE]; RETHINKX, supra note 1, at 6. 6 See infra Parts II-III. 7 This paper is the first in a series of articles that explores the narratives around food technologies that are meant to replace conventional meat, dairy, and eggs. Subsequent articles evaluate the communication of credence attributes by plant-based meat producers and the evolving meaning of “meat.” Nicole E. Negowetti, Plant-Based Meat and the Narratives of Food Technology: Communicating Credence Claims (forthcoming); Nicole E. Negowetti, Censorship, Civil Disobedience, and the Discourse of Disruption: Toppling the “Meat” Monopoly (forthcoming). 8 See, e.g., Impossible Foods, https://impossiblefoods.com/health/ [https://perma.cc/AX6S-8ES9], https://impossiblefoods.com/mission/ [https://perma.cc/7MC9-KLW7]. 144 FOOD AND DRUG LAW JOURNAL VOL. 75 biotechnology in food production, use of herbicides such as glyphosate to grow genetically engineered soy, and nutritional inferiority of animal product “substitutes.”9 As the narrative debates and claims of product superiority move from the forum of social media and onto the products themselves, how will labeling guidance and regulations need to adapt and be modernized? How will these food producers be able to communicate the credence attributes of their products most effectively and truthfully? This paper delves into these questions by exploring the competing narratives and evaluates the appropriate role of government in clarifying, and not further obfuscating, the issues. Focusing on FDA-regulated plant-based meat products that are currently or soon-to-be on the market, this paper will analyze FDA’s existing labeling guidance and regulations regarding “healthy” implied nutrient content claims to recommend an approach that fulfills the agency’s consumer protection mission. The paper also evaluates the shared role of FDA and USDA in developing the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), which set forth recommendations for “healthy” diets. It argues for an approach to defining “healthy” in the DGA and in FDA regulations that considers both human and planetary health, which refers to “the health of human civilization and the state of the natural systems on which it depends,” 10 and allows consumers to compare the healthfulness of alternative products with their conventional counterparts. Because nutrition, safety, and environmental sustainability are all important contributors to overall health, FDA should take a broader approach in establishing a revised regulatory definition of “healthy.” This paper begins by providing an overview of new alternative meat products to set the stage for understanding competing narratives about the healthfulness of these products in relation to their conventional counterparts. Part III evaluates the plant- based meat industry’s communication of its products’ attributes through the framework of FDA’s ongoing efforts to modernize the definition of “healthy.” This Part delves into the debate regarding processing used to produce plant-based meat and its effect on the healthfulness of the products. Part IV analyzes the role of “sustainability” in the definition of “healthy” and recommends broadening the definition of “healthy” to encompass both human and planetary health. II. OVERVIEW OF ALTERNATIVE PROTEINS Products intended to replace conventional meat, dairy, and eggs are being developed and coming to market at a rapid pace, precipitated by the urgency
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